Return to St. Maarten/St. Martin 2022: 4/29/2022 Sightseeing Oyster Pond, Rotary Look Out, Philipsburg, dinner at Le Cottage

Another day getting up early. It's 7:00 am. Richard is having a hard time figuring out how to get this cooktop working. Eventually he figures it out. Breakfast is egg over easy, toast, and coffee.

Richard finally got the cook top working

My breakfast

Today I want to do some sightseeing on the French side and then some on the Dutch side. How did we get lost? We end up at Anse Marcel Beach! Totally not where I wanted to go. The road is rough getting here but it's a nice, fairly calm beach.

Driving

I'm where??

Looks pretty so we'll drive down the rest of the way

Anse Marcel Beach

Restaurant

Pretty flowers

Lovely resort

Swimming pool

Somehow we miss the turn for Orient Beach. This day is not going as planned! We stop at a monument for the St. Martin flag-border crossing into the French side.

More driving

Driving

Impressive

Celebrating 30 years of the St. Martin's flag, north and south

Driving we see several monuments-usually in the roundabouts. Then we do manage to find Oyster Pond and then Rotary Look Out. I must admit I wasn't impressed with either stop.

Drive by a McDonald's

Driving

Monument

Oyster Pond

Rotary Look Out

View-Rotary Look Out

View

By luck we manage to end up in Philipsburg on the Dutch side. A guy is leaving the parking lot so he stays until we can pull into his spot. Very nice of him. But as we're walking I don't see many other people. It looks like the stores are closed. I ask a security guy on a corner and he tells us it's a holiday! Something about the Queen's birthday? And there's no cruise ships in today so most stores decided to close. I did find a small store open on Front Street selling hats, T shirts, touristy souvenirs. I bought 3 postcards for $2.00 USD. We walk over to the Boardwalk. It's almost deserted! Sign Great Bay Beach. No sense wasting anymore time.

No one here

Great Bay Beach-Philipsburg

Boardwalk area

Shop open where I bought my postcards

Orange School

Clock

Church on Front Street-Philipsburg

Court House

Stand selling souvenirs

Empty Boardwalk

Selling souvenirs

Empty Boardwalk

Stores closed

Colorful

Another monument in a roundabout

I think I'd like to revisit Ft. Amsterdam. We first explored this place back in 1994. You have to get to the Divi Resort in order to get to Ft. Amsterdam. But we can't park at the Divi Resort and the closest parking is really a long walk away. Few miles and I'm just not up for that. So this is a bust too. Should have stayed at our resort!

Back at our place it's overcast so not a nice day at all. We lay out but I don't remember going into the water. We munch on some snacks. Crackers, pepsi, Carib beer.

Snacks

Carib beer-just what Richard needed after this bust of a day

Back to ur beach at GCBC

Overcast

Sun getting ready to set

LE COTTAGE. I have dinner reservations for 7:00 pm. We park in the same lot we've parked in before. You pay $5.00 USD to the lot guy. Tell him the name of the restaurant. He gives you a paid slip which you give to the restaurant and then they give you $5.00 USD back! Drinks-boy I need one after this day! Alamo it is. Tequilla, club soda, orange juice, pineapple juice. So good. Richard-bottled water. We decide to both order the traditional French onion soup. It was superb. Bread basket-this place the bread is very, very crunchy. Then complimentary shooters of gazpacho-green asparagus, celery, mousse. Tasty. I have read that the ravioli is supposed to be good so I chose that. Homemade ravioli filled with spinach, sauteed mushrooms, and asparagus. I wasn't a fan to be honest. The mushrooms overpowered all the other fillings. Richard did better. Red snapper with risotto, carrots and broccoli. Maybe dessert will be better. Richard only gets 1 scoop of maple ice cream which he says is very nice. I go for the valrhona chocolate fondant with hazelnut ice cream and homemade chantilly. It was great. As I put my fork to the cake warm chocolate sauce oozed out. Scrumptious. Complimentary shots of rum but I forgot to note what kind. Cost without tip 111.28€/$117.89 USD.